Exploring the Unknown - NASA's History Office

[2] Distribution
*A-1/Dr. Robert A. Frosch (Attn: Executive Secretary)
*AD-1/Dr. Alan M. Lovelace
ADB-1/Gen. Duward L. Crow
*B-1/Mr. William Lilly
*BR-2/Mr. Jeff Barber
*BR-2/Mr. Dick Midgett
*E-1/Dr. Anthony Calio
*E-1/Mr. Leonard Jaffe
*ER-2/Mr. Pitt Thome
*EPR-3/ Mr. Pinkler
G-1/Mr. Neil Hosenball
*L-1/Mr. Kenneth R. Chapman
*LC-5/Dr. Joseph Allen
*LG-2/Mr. Edward Z. Gray
LGW-2/Mr. Dick Stone
LI-15/Mr. Norman Terrell
N-1/Mr. Ray Kline
*P-1/Dr. John E. Naugle
R-1/Dr. James Kramer (Attn: Mr. R. Nysmith)
S-1/Dr. Noel Hinners (Attn: Mr. C. Wash)
T-1/Mr. Norman Pozinsky (Attn: Mr. R. Stock)
Center
*Dr. C. Kraft, Director, JSC (Attn: Messrs. P. Whitbeck & L. Sullivan)
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COMPTROLLER GENERAL’S REPORT TO THE CONGRESS
Crop Forecasting by Satellite: Progress and Problems
DIGEST
A 3-year, three-agency Federal project is developing technology to improve estimates
of foreign wheat crops. It is called the Large Area Crop Inventory Experiment (LACIE)
and is carried out as follows:
— The National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s (NASA’s) Earth Resources
Technology Satellite (Landsat) provides data for estimating wheat acreage.
— The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration provides information to
assist in estimating crop yield under various weather conditions.
— The Department of Agriculture—the user of wheat crop estimates—provides historical
data and defines requirements for the project.
IMPORTANCE OF WORLD CROP INFORMATION
EXPLORING THE UNKNOWN 273
To date, LACIE has had mixed success in achieving its performance goals. Farmers,
importers, exporters, agribusiness companies, Federal and State policymakers, foreign
governments, and international organizations use foreign agricultural information. But if
more accurate and timely information were available, these parties could better achieve